Flowers have several different purposes. Flowers don’t have only scientific purposes, but they can be used to gift someone or decorate a place, or any other purpose. Many professions are closely related to flowers. Floristry and floral designing are two such professions, and the [erson following that profession is known as a florist and a floral designer respectively.
Florist vs Floral Designer
The main difference between a florist and a floral designer is that a florist is a person who sells flowers, plants, and bouquets. On the other hand, a floral designer is a person who uses flowers as a decorative item for several different occasions such as weddings, birthdays, festivities, and more.
A florist is a professional person who sells flowers and bouquets. Florists are generally found in florist stores or botanical gardens. One can visit a florist or a florist store to buy flowers or bouquets. However, in today’s time, many florists have turned their business online as well. So you can even buy flowers or bouquets through different trusted websites.
A floral designer is a person who is appointed or hired as a flower designer for occasions. The floral designer has a very deep understanding of how to use flowers for decorations, what impact flowers can leave on the people attending the occasion, what flowers should be used to match the aesthetic or the theme of the occasion, and other such things.
Comparison Table Between Florist and Floral Designer
| Parameters of comparison | Florist | Floral designer |
| Work | A florist sells flowers and bouquets. | A floral designer uses flowers for decoration for occasions and festivities. |
| Customization | A florist can make customized bouquets on demand. | A floral designer can customize the design for the occasion with flowers. |
| Use of flowers | A florist can provide flowers for the occasion. | A floral designer uses flowers as decoration for occasions. |
| Works in | A florist has a shop or a store. | A floral designer generally works in a studio. |
| Display | A florist always has flowers on display in their commercial stores. | A floral designer may or may not have flowers on display in their studio. |
Who is a Florist?
The office of a professional florist is known as floristry. Florists offer a wide range of flowers and bouquets for several different purposes, such as weddings, birthday parties, festival celebrations, and other such occasions. The job of a florist is not just to sell flowers, but also to take care of flowers, arrange them, merchandise them, and more.
Apart from flowers, a florist can also sell several different kinds of plants such as herbs, ornamental grass, foliages, and more. Florists can sell flowers in multiple different types of designs and styles which can vary from one culture and tradition to the other. Some of the most popular types of designs of flowers that florists sell are Ikebana, English garden, European style or also known as modern style, Dutch style or also known as contemporary style, and more.
Ikebana is a style of flower sold by florists that originated in Japan. It is designed for personal enjoyment purposes and consists of only simple flowers. Ikebana is divided into 3 different segments which signify 3 different entities, that are, heaven, man, and earth.
The English garden is another most popular type of flower style sold by florists. It majorly consists of foliages and seasonal flowers. Some of the most common types of flowers that are used in the making of English garden-style bouquets are roses, peonies, camellia, gardenia, and delphinium.
Who is a Floral Designer?
It is quite observable that flowers are used as decorations in weddings, parties, and festival celebrations. The person who designs the venue for occasions with several different varieties of flowers is known as a professional floral designer.
A floral designer can style an event using flowers in several different styles and designs. Some of the most popular designs that a floral designer uses to style an event are garden styles, such as compote, armature, hand-tied, botanical style, western lune, formal linear, crescent corsage, and more.
Apart from just styling the event using the flowers, a floral designer has several other responsibilities as well. A floral designer also makes floral garlands, floral corsages, floral bows, floral boutonniere, floral nosegays, floral wreaths, floral festoons, and more.
Before choosing what type of flowers should be used in an event, several different factors must be considered by a floral designer. These factors of consideration are known as elements of floral design. Some of the most crucial elements of floral design are the space of the venue, color, line, texture of the venue. It also includes, the color of flowers, balance, contrast, brightness, size, the proportion of the flowers to the venue, and more.
Main Differences Between Florist and Floral Designers
- A florist has a commercial store. On the other hand, a floral designer does not have any commercial store.
- A florist can sell flowers without any prior appointment or order for general cases. On the contrary, a floral designer needs to be appointed or hired for a minimum of 7 days to a maximum of 30 days before the occasion.
- A florist focuses on selling flowers for a larger variety of events and occasions. Whereas, a floral designer majorly focuses upon weddings or celebrations.
- A florist generally does not have any knowledge about using flowers for decoration. On the other hand, a floral designer has immense knowledge about using flowers for decoration purposes.
- A florist is less economical as compared to a floral designer. On the contrary, a floral designer is more economical as compared to a florist.
Conclusion
Though florists and floral designers are two such professions that do not just sound similar, the work of these professionals is closely related to flowers. However, they are two completely different professions. You would need to visit a florist if you want to buy flowers or a bouquet to gift someone or for several other purposes. On the other hand, you would need to hire a floral designer if you want to decorate a venue for any occasion with flowers.
References
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09593960902781334
- https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=P1oIEuXh_DsC&oi=fnd&pg=PA1&dq=florist&ots=FcZ1O_gHeN&sig=Q-VgsoRU9RKLgXCwGp8e0EN20Kk